Oil Execs Defend Huge Profits Before Senate

momzcrazy

My fave line in this article. “People we represent are hurting, the companies you represent are profiting.”

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24757944

momz

JeffT

The irony is, of course, that the government gets a bigger cut of what you spend at the pump than the oil companies do.

The other irony is that the only ones that can actually help lower the price (by increasing supply and reducing demand) is the goobermint. The cos want to pump more, but they can't go to a lot of areas to do that.

BTS

BurnTheShips

The whole interrogation is a big circus so that the congressclowns can look like they are trying to do something. Unless they start spewing petroleum instead of hot air in the Capitol, ain't gonna change a thing.

hillbilly

When oil hit $100 a barrel we started seeing a whole lot of dormant pumps in low producing stakes start up again. We started seeing a lot of new wells being drilled and some new methods of efficient extraction come out.

That tells me that oil less than $100 is not worth screwing with...........all business has margins... now we know what it is for oil production.

Make those oil companies invest in production.

Jeff

Gopher

BTS is right -- this is a show. Congress is chasing after symptoms here.

This problem started way back with the first energy crisis of the 1970's. Americans responded by getting smaller cars and people were considering alternate energy sources.

In the 1980's, all that progressive thinking stopped. In the 90's people started getting SUV's and such.

Now we're back in corrective mode, and we've wasted decades and are paying the price for having big cars and for assuming the status quo would be fine.

Once Americans start paying over $6 a gallon for gas, and the inflation due to higher oil costs continues to rise to an enormous level, maybe there will be the political will in this country to get serious about alternative energy sources -- or about drilling closer to home at the very least.

Gopher

Hill,

One of the execs testified yesterday that his company WAS re-investing its profits to the extent possible. I don't know that we can possibly legislate the oil companies into doing more re-investing, when they claim they're already doing that.

hillbilly

I guess we need to catch up from not having a cohesive energy policy since Nixon ignored the first oil embargo.

Maybe tax credit for investing in plant, etc for all production business would be a start. It used to pay to build business... now it pays to close up or move away... and thats been the theme for over 20 years now.

Hill

SixofNine

"I don't know that we can possibly legislate the oil companies into doing more re-investing, when they claim they're already doing that."

Are you kidding?

SixofNine

"I don't know that we can possibly legislate the oil companies into doing more re-investing, when they claim they're already doing that."

Are you kidding?

Oil Execs Defend Huge Profits Before Senate

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